The Automobile Club de France did not allow female members, so a women’s equivalent was founded in 1926. It was incorporated in 1925 and began its activities early the following year.
Its first president was Anne Rochechouart de Mortemart, the duchess of Uzes. She remained in the post until her death in 1933, when Elaine Greffulhe, the duchess of Gramont, was elected as her successor.
The ACFF’s membership came from the upper classes, with many of the committee members having husbands who sat on the all-male club’s board. A good proportion of the committee was titled and some came from notable families such as the Rothschilds. Giorigina Bingen, wife of Andre Citroen, was among them. Despite its select entry requirements, there were many senior members who were Jewish, such as Bingen, Beatrice Reinach and two Rothschild baronesses.
The founder of the Paris-St. Raphael Rally, Count Edme de Rohan-Chabot, was involved, chiefly as the publisher for the club’s magazine. Many members were regulars in early runnings of the Paris-St. Raphael, although it remained independent of the club itself.
Much of the club’s role was to provide social activities for motor-minded ladies, including tours and meet-ups at members’ (stately) homes. These were recorded in its regular magazine, alongside travel and fashion advice, social gossip, reports from major motorsport events and even poetry.
It did, however, organise its own rallies, including some international ones: the Paris-Rome Rally in 1932 and the Paris-Amsterdam in 1931. In its earliest days, it was responsible for the Paris-La Baule Rally which began in 1925.
A “Winter Sports Rally” ran between Paris and Chamonix in 1935, following a “surprise rally” which ended up in Rambouillet in 1934.
The annual rally in 1936 ran between Paris and Le Touquet and was won by Jacqueline Seligmann. Her car is not recorded. The competitive element this time was a regularity test of some 220km.
Magdeleine, Comtesse de Ganay, was the most successful driver in these rallies. She won the Paris-Cannes event in 1930 and was second in the Paris-Amsterdam Rally the year after, both in a Reinastella.
From time to time, the Club took itself to the forests for a trial, including one in early 1935 which featured a Chanel dress as a prize, won by Jacqueline Seligmann. There were also “paper chase” and treasure hunt-style rallies in towns.
A few ACFF ladies did go on to have serious and successful motorsport careers, including Marguerite Mareuse, one of the first women to race at Le Mans.
The Second World War curtailed the activities of the club and its magazine ceased publication in 1939.
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